Our Services

Cutting Edge K9 Rehab offers the most comprehensive rehab facilities in the country. Below is a breakdown of our services and how they can vastly improve your dog's health either post-surgery, post-injury or for general health and agility:

Swim Therapy

Swimming is one of our strongest recommendations for most K9's. It is an ideal form of exercise for a number of reasons. Our rehab services offer assisted swimming in a warm water environment. We typically offer 30 minutes of swim time. The benefits are:

• Is non-weight-bearing (reducing stress on joints)
• Facilitates full use of the front and hind legs vs. partial use as seen with underwater treadmills
• Dogs are often able to actively swim although unable to move their legs on land (due to stroke/spinal injury) Watch video>>
• Allows manual techniques by therapist/ manual resistance to an affected limb
• Swimming in a controlled environment is the safest way for clients to exercise.
• Most important: they have fun!
  

Underwater Treadmill

We find the underwater treadmill very helpful in regulating the pace of a dogs gait. Many dogs do not want to slow down once they get their momentum going ("Let's run!!! ). Running is much easier than walking for them and they do not challenge their balance and coordination systems which is needed to recover from these deficits. The smaller breeds do EVERYTHING fast; the treadmill forces them to slow down We often do 15 minutes with the treadmill followed by 15 minutes of swim time to achieve optimal results in each session. The benefits are:

• Variable speed
• Water height is regulated to accommodate the individual needs of each dog (partial weight-bearing to full weight-bearing)
• Works the dog's muscles in a functional closed chain exercise manner
• Great conditioning/cross training
  

Training With Trish

Our "stay fit-stay healthy" program "Training with Trish--Personal Training for dogs" includes diet and nutritional counseling, weight management, cross training for sports, show and working dogs; instruction in massage, stretching and home exercise programs. These services are also incorporated in our rehab programs. The program details are:

• Introduction to the Water
• Pool Safety Training
• Swimming Lessons for all Ages
• High Level Cardio Workout Plans
• Nutritional Counseling
• Click here for full details on the Training With Trish program»

Modalities - Electric Stimulation & Ultrasound

Modalities such as Electric Stim can be used for pain reduction/muscle re-education/healing. An active muscle contraction can be activated which stimulates the neurological pathway to give the brain feedback that a paralyzed or weak muscle is still there ready to do its job. Micro- stim promotes and accelerates the healing process for muscles, tendons and bone. Ultrasound is a form of deep heat that promotes healing of the tissue while breaking down scar tissue.

Massage Therapy

Massage or Relaxation therapy can be done superficially and lightly or deeply. Superficially, It is used for general increased circulation and feeling of well-being. Deep tissue massage is used for muscle imbalances, mainly in dogs that are weak in one or more legs. These dogs will compensate and overuse the legs/muscles that are carrying the load. Deep tissue massage actually gets into the muscle and releases the tension or spasm. All massage increases circulation, decreases muscle stiffness, decreases stress and restores balance of different muscle groups. Combining massage with stretching is most beneficial and we can teach these techniques to the dog owner.

Home Exercise Programs

We offer one-on-one home programs for the dog's specific needs such as stretching, massage and specific exercises.

Carts/Splints

We offer measuring and fitting of the carts/splints and training techniques to help your dog adapt.

Who else can benefit from Swim Therapy?

HEALTHY DOGS - Cross Training for the athlete (agility/fly ball/ show dogs, etc) We just want to swim!!!

OVERWEIGHT DOGS - Being over weight greatly reduces the lifespan of your canine companion.

ARTHRITIC/SENIOR CITIZEN DOGS- water aerobics to keep things moving!

POST-OP: ORTHOPEDIC SURGERY DOGS - knee, hip and elbow surgery.

NEUROLOGICAL PATIENT DOGS - disc herniation and stroke, nerve damage due to traumatic injury, spinal surgery.